Quality management systems are based on Plan-Do-Check-Act. Now is the time to check what your organisation has achieved. In order to demonstrate that you are continually improving and aiming to meet your objectives you need to be able check progress. To do that, you will need first to measure what has been done.

MEASURE
How are you going to measure progress?
The programmes you set up to achieve your targets will give you a good starting point. This will measure your progress internally against your oen organisations objectives. A second way of measuring successes is against indicators. This is similar to benchmarking your organisation against a set criteria. As there are no standards or 'kite mark' for sustainable food systems, epaw have developed a set of indicators for you to use. We have used different types of indicators, along the guidelines in ISO 140031 Produce Indicators [Environmental Management Standard]. These are:

• operational indicators that look at how your company does things
• management indicators show managers are performing
• environmental indicators here we look at external indicators throughout the sustainable food chain which as a purchaser you can influence and exert some control

Indicators are written in plain terms so they can be understood by everyone. They tell you where you want to be. You can make judgements about the present and make plans for the future using the indicators. Each sustainable food issue has one or more indicators and a system for you to measure your progress against these.

Managers Tasks:

Collate progress in programmes and target achievements. Compile short report for senior management detailing successes and indicating any problems or revisions you may need.

Measure the organisation's overall achievements against the epaw sf indicators

Arrange for another manager to check or audit your indicators against your target progress. As there are no standards for sustainable food systems, there is no need to have external auditors. However, consumer confidence will be improved if there is some sort of auditing. You may wish to use auditors from other parts of the organisation. There may be existing quality or environmental auditors in your organisation. They should be quite able to check on your progress.

Skilled Workers Tasks: Complete the sf 'plant mark' Feedback to managers All staff Tasks: Take part in the 'plant mark' survey.

REVIEW

Once you have carried out your check activities you need to feedback to all concerned and start to go through the system again.

Managers Tasks:

Prepare report on progress with objectives and targets, include your indicators score and the plant mark carried out by employees

Bring together the key partners. These should include:

Senior Management and representatives from skilled workers
Key stakeholders, including suppliers
NGO or Trade Union

Discuss whether your targets have been met and that this has been properly demonstrated and confirmed by auditors or others.

Look at the policy and decide which objectives have been met

Decide what you can say about the achievements of your organisation. You may wish to have some sort of signal of your achievements. To help make this decision, compare your results with the priorities criteria set out by DEFRA.

DEFRA identified the following priorities for Sustainable Food:

i. as a baseline, require suppliers to meet appropriate assurance standards
ii. operate in a way which takes account of the main sustainable development priorities which are:
• Supporting local and regional economies
• Resource efficiency (particularly energy use)
• Reducing waste (particularly packaging)
• Improving nutrition
iii. make premium standard options available to consumers where there is scope to do so, e.g. in catering contracts. Organic and fair trade products should be priorities here." More in "Integrating sustainable development into public procurement of food and catering" DEFRA (pdf)

As there is no "sustainable food kite mark", we suggest you include the key partners (above) in your review and that you agree whether your organisation is "working towards sustainable food".

If all the key partners are part of the review and have examined your checking, or auditing, and indicators, they should be competent enough to decide that the organisation is acting to "working towards Sustainable Food".

EPaW offer a certificate to your organisations if you can demonstrate that you are "working towards sustainable food". Submit your review to us, including your indicators scoring, and signed by the key stakeholders. Include examples of employees plant marks with scores.

Revise your policy and set new objectives with targets. You should be moving to include more sf issues and increasing targets.